Tony Ferguson fighting Michael Johnson at UFC on FOX 3

Ultimate Fighter 13 winner Tony Ferguson will hope the third time’s a charm where scheduled opponents are concerned after watching Thiago Tavares, a replacement for original adversary Dennis Hallman, go down with injury while training for a May 5 match-up at UFC on FOX 3. Based on the Brazilian’s condition the UFC has now booked TUF 12 finalist Michael Johnson to face the surging striker on the event’s undercard.

News of the match-up was confirmed earlier this week by the UFC.

Ferguson has looked sharp in all of his Octagon appearances, going 3-0 thus far since his run on TUF. The 28-year old is 13-2 in his career and on a six-fight winning streak including five strike-based stoppages. Most recently “El Cucuy” was seen picking apart veteran Yves Edwards en route to a decision victory.

Johnson, who himself has never been finished via TKO, has also shown flashes of brilliance in his UFC career and looked better than ever against Shane Roller in late January.